quel quiche!

So far, our spring break has been packed with eggs, milk, crust, and cheese. Yum! In a span of a scant 5 days, I have made two quiches, both entirely homemade, from the crust to the meaty fillings. And best of all, I’ve made my distinctly non-francophile husband drool and beg for quiches, to the delight of my quarter-French heart.

The fabulous thing about quiche is that not only does it taste stupendous when cooked well, but it’s also a great way to get rid of leftovers. Five days ago, after staring at the tubs of leftovers in our fridge with much consternation, my eyes clapped on a bagful of roast chicken and a bowlful of baked ham from the weekend. Voila! That took care of two of my three favorite quiches: quiche lorraine (ham and swiss) and roast chicken and gouda. (The third, my dear quiche au poireaux, was sadly neglected, as I had no leeks.)

So I’ll divulge these two oh-so-French varieties in the recipes below, but rest assured that you can toss most any vegetable, meat and cheese in a quiche and it will still taste delicious. And feel free to use the prepackaged crust — that little cheat alone makes the entire quiche-prep process a mere 5 minutes.

P.S. Please forgive the hazy amounts listed below… I really measure and cook by feeling more than number. It makes it difficult to nail down recipes.
P.P.S. I know you’re thinking, “Then why do you have a food blog in which you share recipes? Clearly you are too flighty, emotional, and scatterbrained to create trusty recipes.” To this I shall respond: “Who has the food blog? You or me? All right then.”
P.P.P.S. My skills of debate are about as mediocre as my aptitude for precision.

Basic Quiche

1 deep-dish crust
8-9 eggs
Approx. 1 1/2 cups milk (About three hearty glugs)
S&P
A baby sprinkle of nutmeg
Possible fillings: 1 cup each of chopped ham and swiss, 1 1/2 cups sliced leeks, 1/2 cup sautéed onions and 1 1/2 cup cheddar, etcetera

Whisk together the eggs, milk, and spices. Place the fillings in the crust, then pour the egg mixture over the filling. Bake at 350 until the middle is set, about 50 minutes to 1 hour.

golden chicken

There are few things that genuinely terrify me in the kitchen. One of them is whole chicken. The first time I bought one, I didn’t let it thaw properly, then found the necessity of poking and prodding the poor chicken’s… hole… completely disgusting. As in, I danced around the kitchen shrieking until my husband came in and had a go at it. Even he joined me in (manly) shrieking after a couple seconds.

So until I screw up the courage, I’ll settle for cleaned, separated chicken parts that come in a neat little package at the supermarket. My favorite are drumsticks, which are about two bucks for five and highly appealing when roasted.

I can’t take full credit for this method; the basics come from the quirky French mind of Clothilde Dusolier, blogging doyenne of Chocolate & Zucchini, the best food blog… well, ever. The best part is, it’s easy to customize and mold to your own tastebuds.

Easy Oven Chicken

Drumsticks
S&P

Prepare meat by rubbing it with S&P, or any other spice you darn well want. Or cloak it in barbecue sauce. Or Italian dressing. Or drizzle some olive oil and tuck in a few sprigs of fresh herb and garlic cloves around it. The possibilities are endless.

Lay the meat in a glass or metal baking pan (lightly grease the bottom if you’re not using oil on the chicken). Stick in a 360-degree oven, leave it in there for an hour, and presto! Perfect, juicy, crunchy-skinned chicken.